Sexual Health in the News Week of May 30-June 05

Other News This Week

Nearly 300,000 girls between the ages of 15 and 19 give birth every year in the US, and a third of them won't earn a diploma or a GED by age 22. But states and districts that once had robust support programs for teen parents now have no dedicated funding for these vulnerable youth.

New York Teens Finally Get Schooled on Condom Use - Refinery 29New York City public high schools can show students how to use condoms in high school health classes, a change from a previous policy that did not allow such demonstrations in classrooms.

After a lobbying campaign by Even the Score and a variety of other women's health advocacy groups, an FDA advisory panel recommended approval of what would become the first drug to treat a lack of sexual desire in women.

A law requiring private insurers to allow women to collect a 12-month supply of birth control in a single visit, rather than the one-month dose often supplied, is headed to the governor's desk in Oregon. A separate bill, which would allow pharmacists to dispense contraceptives directly without physician oversight, was passed by the House and is heading to the Senate.

A new report, Mapping LGBT Equality in America, ranks US states by their LGBT rights policies, rating them as high, low, medium, or negative in regard to equality. The report notes that, even if marriage equality becomes a nationwide reality, LGBT Americans will still be subject to many inequities.